A Mother By Any Name
by justanoutlaw
Summary: Emma has never given any thought to what she calls her mothers...until Leroy comments on it.


Loboselinaistrash prompted this to me on Tumblr. =) Set as though the curse just sent them to Storybrooke but no one was actually "cursed".

* * *

No one was sure how it started, it was just a part of their everyday life.

The first time Emma said "Mama", it was to Snow. She said it a few days later to Ruby. Both milestones were recorded in the baby book and life went on as normal. As Emma got older, she'd call them both Mommy and Mama, interchangeably. They didn't think it was weird, somehow they could always tell who she was asking for. It stayed the same as she reached her teens and Mommy changed to Mom. Their family was used to it, clearly not everyone was.

It all came to a head one day at the diner. A 13-year-old Emma was leaning up against the wall, waiting for her parents to finish getting Neal and Charlotte ready to leave. She realized that she had left her jacket in the break room, so she called out to Ruby, who was back there.

"Mama, can you get my jacket?"

Granny tsked, watching as Snow helped Neal into his own. "Emma, can't you see your mother is busy? Go back there and get it yourself."

Emma raised an eyebrow. "Granny, I was talking to my other mom."

"Oh." Granny faltered slightly, the way she always did when corrected, it didn't happen too often. "Either way." She waved her great-granddaughter off, which made the latter laugh. "You have perfectly good legs, use 'em."

"I will say," Leroy piped up from his spot at the counter. "It can get quite confusing."

"What do you mean?" Emma asked.

"Your mothers, you don't have a specific name for them."

"Yeah, that is a little odd," Nova agreed with a slight nod. "Look at Henry and Lily. They call Regina "Mom" and Maleficent "Mama." August has different names for his fathers as well."

Emma frowned. She didn't think about it like that. She had grown up with a lot of the kids in her life having two moms or two dads, sometimes more when it came to the few other throuples in Storybrooke. Was she weird for not doing that? Growing up, her parents had never corrected her. It just seemed natural. When she was feeling silly or needing a bit of comfort, the Mama or Mommy would slip out. Mom came with every day conversation. It was just what felt right to her.

But if it was weird, her parents probably thought so and just didn't want to hurt her feelings. She decided in that moment to figure it all out. Snow would be "Mom", Ruby would be "Mama". It'd make things easier on everyone.

Or at least she thought. Snow and Ruby didn't notice the change at first, they'd respond to whatever Emma was saying. Over time, however, it seemed like she was "slipping up." One day, when she meant to talk to Snow, she slipped and called her "Mama". The fact seemed to make the teenager very upset. She did the same when she said to Ruby "Mom, I need a ride to Alex's." It still wasn't quite clear until one particular evening.

Emma plopped down next to Ruby and curled up into her side. Ruby grinned and wrapped her arms around her. "Hey there, pup."

"Hey Mom…agh, I mean, Mommy…no, Mama!"

Ruby saw the clear frustration on her face. "Hey Em, I got the message with mom."

"But it's not your name."

"It's not?"

"I'm trying to train myself, so people stop being confused, especially this family."

"Emma, what are you talking about?"

"Uncle Leroy and Aunt Nova said I confuse people, since I don't have special names for you and…Mom, yes, Mom. I figured you guys felt the same, you just didn't want to hurt my feeling."

Ruby let out a deep breath. "David! Snow! Come in here, please." Her spouses appeared in the room a few moments later and she looked over at her wife. "I'm killing your brother."

"Which one?" Snow asked.

"Leroy. It seems his comments about Emma's names for us have her worried."

Snow frowned and walked over sitting on the other side of her daughter. David followed, knelling in front of her. "What is your mama talking about, kiddo?" He asked.

"Everyone else has specific names for their parents, I don't when it comes to my moms." She shrugged. "I never gave much thought to it until they said something."

"Oh Emma." Snow pushed a lock of hair behind her ear. "That doesn't matter to us."

"It doesn't?"

"Of course not." Ruby smiled. "We know who you're talking to when you say either term."

"It's like twins," David said. "You know how when you read the storybook, you can tell the difference between me and James?" He waited for Emma's nod. "Well, it's like that. We're your family, we can tell who it's directed at. I know your uncle is family too, but he's not here every day like we are."

"I can assure you he didn't mean anything by it. Leroy's just got a big mouth, he doesn't think before talking," Ruby added.

Emma looked like she was feeling a little better, but was clearly still a tad unconvinced. "Are you sure?"

"Of course we're sure," Snow said. "You're our daughter, no matter what you call us, it won't change it. The days you called us "Mama" were amazing."

Emma smiled and leaned back into Ruby, allowing both of her moms to hug her tightly. David grinned at his girls, squeezing Ruby's hand. They just felt so thankful that they had Emma at all. If Regina's curse hadn't failed, there was a chance they wouldn't have heard "Mom" or "Mam" escape her lips. They were a family and that was all that mattered.


End file.
